He was convicted in a Paris court. The judge did not sentence him to any prison time, though the charge could have carried a sentence of up to six months behind bars.

"I am from another generation," Guerlain said during the trial, so part of the remark was "a common expression at the time". He also said he did so during a TV interview because he "wanted to make the journalist laugh and I regret it".

"I was anything but racist," he said, standing before the court with the help of crutches.

Lawyers for the SOS Racism association said Guerlain abused the national platform he was given.

The cosmetics company distanced itself from Guerlain, who had retired at 65 but remained a consultant.

Guerlain is the great-great-grandson of the founder of the company, now owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.